LA JOLLA, Calif. — I was born on the saddest day of the year in Paris, France – the Day of the Dead! Catholics in France wore black on October 31 and went to cemeteries to honor the dead. There were no parties and everyone looked glum. When I was thirteen, I came to America as a refugee, having gotten out just in time with the last ship out of Genoa, Italy, to land in Ellis Island. It was October 19, 1939. Ten days later, in New York City, Halloween was celebrated by children in costumes, ringing doorbells, saying the magic words, “Trick or Treat” as they held out their bags for candy. It was a miracle; I was now born on the most fun day of the year!
Eighty-three years after my family’s arrival to the U.S., I will be 96 on Halloween, living in a retirement community in La Jolla, California. My grandchildren and great-grandchildren all go trick or treating on my birthday. On Halloween, at my retirement community, White Sands La Jolla, the staff competes for best costume with the residents serving as judges. It is a far cry from the sad early years of my birthday.
Halloween has Pagan roots. It was influenced by the Celtic Harvest Festival, especially the Gaelic Festival of Samhain, which may have been Christianized as All Hollow’s Day, together with its eve by the early church. It is also believed that it may have begun as a Christian holiday as Vigil of All Hollows Day.
It was celebrated in Ireland and Scotland for centuries. Irish and Scottish migrants brought many Halloween customs to North America in the 19th century. Then, with American influence, Halloween spread to other countries by the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
In America, Halloween activities include trick-or-treating, attending Halloween costume parties, carving pumpkins into jack-o’-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, and watching horror or Halloween-themed films. For Christian religious observers of All Hallows’ Eve (also knowns as All Saints Day), includes attending church services and lighting candles on the graves of the dead, remain popular; although it is a secular celebration for others. Some Christians historically abstained from meat on All Hallows’ Eve, a tradition reflected in the eating of certain vegetarian foods on this vigil day, including apples and potato pancakes.
Mexican people have yet a different tradition on October 31, November 1 and 2: they celebrate the Day of the Dead (“Día de los Muertos”). It has a less solemn tone and is portrayed as a holiday of joyful celebration, rather than mourning. The multi-day holiday involves family and friends gathering to pay respects and to remember friends and family members who have died. These celebrations can take a humorous tone, as celebrants remember funny events and anecdotes about the departed. Traditions connected with the holiday include building home altars (called ofrendas) with the departed’s favorite foods and beverages, and visiting graves with these items as gifts for the deceased. It is also common to give gifts to friends on this occasion, such as candied sugar skulls, and traditional pan de muerto with family and friends, and to write lighthearted and often irreverent verses in the form of mock epitaphs dedicated to living friends and acquaintances, a literary form known as calaveras literarias.
If you happen to be in downtown San Diego on October 31, you will see masked revelers wearing costumes of skeletons and ghosts, happily walking around eating and drinking amid food stands and shops selling souvenirs. So, depending on where I am on my birthday this year, the celebrations will be very different, whether in Ireland, Mexico, France, or America.
When we were living in a house in La Jolla, children would come to our door with containers for candy. The tradition is that if we don’t have any to give, they will do some prank to your property. On one of my birthdays, we were invited to a Halloween party; we left our home in the dark and departed. When we returned, our trees were festooned with toilet paper. It took us a while to get it all cleaned up. Thereafter, we made it a point to stay home and safeguard our yard.
I will be celebrating my 96th Halloween/birthday. Yes, the broom still fits. I am a certified witch! On this October 31, may your treats be many and your tricks be few. Wishing you, all my readers, a fun Halloween!
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© Natasha Josefowitz. This article appeared initially in the La Jolla Village News. You may comment to natasha.josefowitz@sdjewishworld.com